Be Seen in the Dark

I want to tell you a story. I went for a run early morning. It was pouring rain and it was still pitch black out. I started my run around 5:16am in downtown Minneapolis. I ran through the streets and then around Lake of the Isles in Minneapolis. During my run, I saw three other runners, handful of pedestrians, and four cyclists. Out of all the people that I saw on my 4-mile run, two cyclists had lights, no one else had any lights or reflective.

To me, that is complete stupidity. If you do not have reflective or lights, you are 100% not seen. Bright and colorful clothing does not help when it is dark out. Ultimately, you are out on a run or cycling because you want to take care of yourself. So why are you not protecting yourself while out on that run or bike ride? Here is what I do when I am out on a run in the dark. Here is my list of must haves:

Headlamp: I use the Black Diamond Ion It is cheap and it does the job. Nothing too fancy.

Reflective Hat/Headband: I am a big fanboy of Buff® USA products so I have a couple of their reflective hats and headbands.

Reflective Strips: I put these things on everything. I work for Brilliant Reflective so obviously I like the product but I wish I knew about them earlier. All you do is put the strips on your clothing and you are good to go.

Whether you are training for something or you are just a daily runner, consider this: if you get hit by a car, a bike, or step off the curb wrong because you couldn’t see it, you will not be able to run. Take care of visibility and safety like you take care of your training and physical fitness.